Lennox blades are good . The key is the bi metal part. The last blade I purchased from Home depot lost teeth faster than it cut. On the number of teeth per inch depends on what you are cutting . A thirty two tooth per inch works well on something like emt conduit ,while a coarser blade is better for solid stock. Don't underestimate hand tools.
-
Welcome back Guest! Did you know you can mentor other members here at H-M? If not, please check out our Relaunch of Hobby Machinist Mentoring Program!
Help with using an abrasive saw on material
- Thread starter Brento
- Start date
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2015
- Messages
- 9,610
As another point to consider, I cut 7/8" steel plate with my Craftsman circular saw and a Norton 7" x 3/32" cutoff wheel. I was cutting about 1"/min. and the wheel held up surprisingly well to the task as did the saw.
Here's what I'm talking about:
www.kbctools.com
They don't have these at the big box stores. The above one will take 2" round. There is one on Craigslist used for $300. I tried cutting 2" round with a flimsy home improvement type Milwaukee 14". It took two people nearly 2 hours, and it was exhausting. In contrast, Starrett 14 tpi bi-metal hacksaw blades and a hand hack saw went through in a little over an hour. This is definitely a win, since the chop saw was noisy, dirty, and tripped power several times. I think it was smoking when it was done. It also cost $200. I gave a piece to my blacksmith friend with an industrial bandsaw. It could do the job in a few minutes with flood coolant, but one of these would be a little large for a home shop.
If you really think you don't have enough room or you don't want to pay for a decent saw, use the hacksaw. You can build a beefier hacksaw as well. The main problem with hand hacksaws is they are too light, too springy, and people use blades that are too fine. Note that if you just put a coarse blade on a big box hacksaw, it will skate since it doesn't have enough weight. If you clamp a weight to the frame, the saw will bow and flex. You really need to do all three. Eventually you will end up with a blacksmith's saw. This has a huge frame made from forged solid stock resembling a bow saw. It is heavy and uses a 10 tpi or so bimetal band saw blade punched at the ends. It will bulk you up. Still too much work??? Find someone with a shop which has a good saw. Note, the red Milwaukee saw does not have a warning on the box saying not suitable for 2" 4140 round bar. Nowadays, products have all kinds of warnings written all over their documentation except the warnings we really need to hear.
KBC,COS-16 16IN. ABRASIVE CUT-OFF SAW 3PH,6-100-010,KBC Tools & Machinery
KBC,COS-16 16IN. ABRASIVE CUT-OFF SAW 3PH,6-100-010,KBC Tools & Machinery
They don't have these at the big box stores. The above one will take 2" round. There is one on Craigslist used for $300. I tried cutting 2" round with a flimsy home improvement type Milwaukee 14". It took two people nearly 2 hours, and it was exhausting. In contrast, Starrett 14 tpi bi-metal hacksaw blades and a hand hack saw went through in a little over an hour. This is definitely a win, since the chop saw was noisy, dirty, and tripped power several times. I think it was smoking when it was done. It also cost $200. I gave a piece to my blacksmith friend with an industrial bandsaw. It could do the job in a few minutes with flood coolant, but one of these would be a little large for a home shop.
If you really think you don't have enough room or you don't want to pay for a decent saw, use the hacksaw. You can build a beefier hacksaw as well. The main problem with hand hacksaws is they are too light, too springy, and people use blades that are too fine. Note that if you just put a coarse blade on a big box hacksaw, it will skate since it doesn't have enough weight. If you clamp a weight to the frame, the saw will bow and flex. You really need to do all three. Eventually you will end up with a blacksmith's saw. This has a huge frame made from forged solid stock resembling a bow saw. It is heavy and uses a 10 tpi or so bimetal band saw blade punched at the ends. It will bulk you up. Still too much work??? Find someone with a shop which has a good saw. Note, the red Milwaukee saw does not have a warning on the box saying not suitable for 2" 4140 round bar. Nowadays, products have all kinds of warnings written all over their documentation except the warnings we really need to hear.
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2013
- Messages
- 4,308
I have 4 different hacksaws on my wall, each with a different blade - 8-12tpi, 14-18tpi, 24tpi and 32tpi - and I pick the one appropriate for the material. I do have a 4x6 bandsaw too, which I use when I need straight cuts or bigger pieces, but sometimes it's quicker and easier to use a hacksaw. Picking the right tpi for the job makes a huge difference - I think the rule of thumb is a minimum of 3 tooth in the cut at all times.
I've found that dark sulphur cutting oil and a slow heavy stroke works well on stainless.
I've found that dark sulphur cutting oil and a slow heavy stroke works well on stainless.